Philanthropy Archives

Bruner Foundation Records, 1980-1995

Mss 018
22.8 c.f. (22 cartons, 2 document boxes)

ABSTRACT

The Bruner Foundation was
founded in 1963 using funds donated by Rudy and Martha Bruner. The foundation began with the purpose of
aiding programs in health care and preventive medicine, and programs focused on
Jewish concerns. Since the 1980s, the
Bruner Foundation has broadened its purpose to include educational programs,
evaluation of grant programs, and urban renovation. Today, the main activity of the foundation is
the Rudy Bruner Award for Excellence in the Urban Environment, given every two
years.

The records consist mainly of
the Bruner Foundation's activities since 1965.
These documents include board minutes, grant records, educational
programs, correspondence, conference proceedings, and the records of the Rudy Bruner
Award for Excellence in the Urban Environment.

ACCESS

This collection is open to the
public without restriction. The
copyright law of the United States (Title 17, United States Code) govern the
making of photocopies or other reproductions of copyrighted material.

Presented by the Bruner
Foundation, Inc., Cambridge, Massachusetts, September 1996.

A1996-03, A1998/99-004.

Processed by Debra Brookhart,
May 1998.

HISTORICAL NOTE

The Bruner Foundation began in
1963 using funds donated by Rudy and Martha Bruner with the purpose of
providing assistance in the areas of health care, education, and Jewish
concerns. After the death of Rudy
Bruner, his wife, Martha, became the president of the foundation. With the aid of their sons, Joshua and
Simeon, the foundation began providing monetary assistance to the causes the
foundation believed concurrent with its purpose. Throughout the foundation's
history, three individuals were selected to handle the daily governance of the
foundation. Richard Herson, Edith
Friedman Goldenson, and Janet Carter, served the foundation as executive
directors between 1969-1996. The dates
of the directorship of these individuals are uncertain, but a rough estimate
can be made. Edith Friedman Goldenson
served as executive director of the foundation from its origins in 1963 until
the mid-1970s. Richard Herson was the
executive director of the foundation from the mid-1970s until January 1, 1984
when Janet Carter became the executive director until the foundation's move to
Cambridge, Massachusetts in 1996.

Grants made by the foundation
were limited to those which emphasized the application of knowledge rather than
basic research. Foundation grants were
often, though not exclusively, made to facilities with Jewish affiliation and
were limited to the United States and Israel.
Early concerns of the foundation involved health care and public
health/preventive medicine. Many of the
foundation's grants funded hospitals, health agencies, and medical schools
during the 1960s and 1970s. Gradually, the focus shifted, not to exclude former
concerns, but to include topics such as education and evaluation. The foundation funded a variety of
educational projects in primary and secondary education such as the Lexington
School for the Deaf, and the Coalition of Essential Schools. Most of these educational grants were made in
New York City Schools. The foundation
also took on an evaluative nature. They
accessed projects and advised on the strengths, weaknesses, and possible
outcomes of programs. Evaluation was an
important part of the foundation's grant-making process from the
beginning. All grantees were required to
turn in progress reports before any grant money would be issued. By doing this, the foundation was able to
evaluate the progress of the program and observe how its money was being used. The new evaluation programs accepted by the
foundation in the 1980s, however, were different. In programs such as the Guidance Initiative
and the Community Schools Project, the foundation's money and personnel were
used to evaluate programs already in place.

In 1985, the foundation added
yet another aspect to its focus. The
Rudy Bruner Award for Excellence in the Urban Environment was created in memory
of Rudy Bruner and his concern for the welfare of America's cities. By 1987, the first award was given. The award, given once every two years, honors
those who show concern for the urban environment and its architecture by
finding creative ways to better it.
After the winner has been chosen, the foundation publishes a book
recording the accomplishments of the finalists and the winner. The award's purpose is to promote change that
significantly hinders the deterioration of cities. To do this, applicants must be aware of every
aspect of urban excellence.
Architectural integrity, cleanliness, and resplendence are all important
to those who choose the winner of the award.

The awards cycle begins with a
review of all applications by a selection committee. Over the years, the number of members of the
committee has ranged from seven to twelve.
Members of the committee review the applications and select five or six
finalists for the award. The finalists
are selected based on four criteria:

1. It must be a real place, not a plan for one.
2. The planning and implementation must be
innovative.
3. The project must address social,
physical, economic, and ecological factors.
4. The project must exemplify community values.

After the finalists are
selected, a two to three member task force is sent to visit the site. The task force documents exactly what the
finalist is doing with the project. Much
of what the task force learns during the visit is later used to write a book
about each finalist and the winner. The
task force selects the project that best meets the four criteria as the winner
of the award. Cash awards and national
recognition are the benefits the Rudy Bruner Award Competition gives to its
winners and participants. In 1993, the
winner was awarded $25,000 and each finalist was given $1,000. <

The Bruner Foundation remained
headquartered in New York City until 1996.
At that time, the foundation moved to Cambridge, Massachusetts, where
the children of the late Rudy and Martha Bruner reside. Today, the Bruner Foundation's main
activities include not only the Rudy Bruner Award, but also grants in education
for the purposes of research and project development.

REFERENCES

Bruner History. Bruner
Foundation Records, 1982-1987, Ruth Lilly Special Collections and Archives,
University Library, Indiana University Purdue University Indianapolis.

The Bruner Foundation Records
consist of five series: the Administration Files, Educational Programs, Grants,
the Rudy Bruner Award for Excellent in the Urban Environment, and
Photographs. These records document the
foundation's activities that have occurred since 1965 and include three
directors: Richard Herson, Edith Friedman, and Janet Carter.

Administration Files, 1980-1996, contain three major types of
records. The records of the Board of
Trustees include correspondence, meeting minutes, and notes on the meetings
taken by Janet Carter. The notes taken
by Janet Carter offer a more detailed look at the meetings and are extremely
useful when used in conjunction with the official minutes. The minutes contain discussions about the
internal structure of the organization and about the grants made by the
foundation including the Rudy Bruner Award for Excellence in the Urban
Environment.

Correspondence files include
general correspondence and subject files with specific organizations. The foundation's relations with the Housing
and Urban Development Department (HUD) are included in this series since they
worked together frequently during the Rudy Bruner Award competitions. Both Bruner and HUD saw a need in the Los
Angeles area shortly after the Rodney King beating and took a research trip to
gather information that would later assist with programs to help during the
crisis.

The records of the executive
director, Janet Carter, contain her essays and speeches, correspondence, and
her involvement with the Council on Foundations and Grant makers Evaluation
Network. She chaired committees in both
organizations, spoke at conferences, and co-edited the Grant-makers Evaluation
Network Newsletter.

Educational Programs, 1980-1996, contain four main areas of
concentration. The Bruner Foundation
evaluated two main educational programs called the Community Schools and the
Guidance Initiative. These files consist
of correspondence, staff reports on site visits, and final reports of the
programs. In both cases, consultants
were hired by the foundation to visit and observe the schools. Each consultant took careful notes of their
visit. These notes were transcribed and
make a direct link between the final reports and what exactly was occurring in
the classrooms. The Community Schools
Project was intended to improve classroom performance in both students and
teachers. The Guidance Initiative was
focused mainly on junior high school students (grades 6-8). Its purpose was to assist children by preparing
them to make wise decisions about their choice of high school. Program directors and consultants wanted the
students to select a high school geared toward their personal academic
interests. To meet that end, they
engaged the help of teachers, guidance counselors, and parents.

This series also contains
information on an educational conference sponsored by the foundation on the
consultants hired by the foundation to evaluate programs. These records contain correspondence,
reports, notes, and, in the case of the Educational Conference, a detailed
description of proceedings. Janet Carter
diligently took notes of all her work.
As with the Board of Trustees records, her notes fill in gaps left in
the official records. Many site
personnel files are followed by notes made by Janet Carter during informal
meetings and telephone conversations.

The Grants Files, 1965-1995, contain correspondence, reports, and
grant proposals funded by the Bruner Foundation. The primary grant topics are
education, health, and Jewish concerns.
Subject files include the authority or signed agreement between the
foundation and the grant recipient, proposals presented to the foundation,
papers written on the grant funded by the foundation and the grant's impact,
meeting minutes, and conferences sponsored by the organization being
funded. Two grants that demonstrate the
foundation's grant making process are the Nurse Practitioners and the
Crossroads School. Each contains the
important aspects of the process such as the proposal, correspondence, and
frequent progress reports. The Nurse
Practitioners grant was made in the early part of 1970 and records the
foundation's early emphasis in the field of medicine and medical training. The grant to Crossroads School was made in 1992
and is a source of information about the later emphasis of the foundation on
education and evaluation.

Rudy Bruner Awards for Excellence in the Urban Environment Records,
1984-1995, are one of the most important focuses of the Bruner Foundation. This series contains records on the history
of the award and its first five award cycles (1987, 1989, 1991, 1993, and
1995). These records carefully document
the awards process. This series contains
correspondence, meetings of both the selection committee and the task force,
information gathered for the book publication, finalist information, and
publicity for the award. The awards
files are arranged in chronological order.
The cycles occur in this order: call for entries, meetings of the
selection committee, site visits by the task force, selection of finalists,
publication of the awards book, and publicity for the finalists. Further information about the Rudy Bruner
Awards can be found in the Board of Trustees minutes. Award applications are located in the
Lockwood Memorial Library's Special Collections at the University of Buffalo
(call number: MicFiche HT175.R83).

Photographs and Tapes, 1973-1994, consist of photographs of grant
projects, the Rudy Bruner Awards winners, and the Rudy Bruner Awards Presentation. This collection contains four tapes, one
video and three audio. The video tape is
a news broadcast about the Farmer's Market, one of the finalists for the Rudy
Bruner Award. One audio tape is a report
given by Edith Friedman about a Physician's Assistant Conference and the other
is a radio broadcast about the Senior Medical Consultants. The Physician's Assistant and Senior Medical
Consultants were both programs funded by the Bruner Foundation. The third audio tape is a task force meeting
prior to the selection of the winner for the 1995 Rudy Bruner Award.

SERIES LIST

CONTENTS

BOX

FOLDER

History of the Bruner Foundation,
1968-1992

1

1

Newsletters, 1991-1992

1

2

Administration Files

Board of Trustees

Correspondence, 1980-1995

1

3-13

Grants, 1994-1996

1

14

Minutes, 1983, 1987-1989, 1992

1

15-19

Notes on Meetings by Janet
Carter, 1981-1987

1

20-22

Correspondence

General Correspondence,
1984-August 1994

1

23-33

General Correspondence,
September 1994-1995

2

1-4

Subject Files

American Educational Research Association Conference, April 4-8, 1994

2

5

American Evaluation Association,
1990-1996

2

6-11

American Institute of
Architects, 1989-1993

2

12

Center for Urban Well-being,
1987-1994

2

13

Communications Network in Philanthropy, 1983- 1995

2

14-16

Documentation Study Group,
1990-1995

2

17-20

Environmental Design Research
Association (EDRA)

Council on Foundations Conference, 1993-1994

2

21

Meetings, 1994-1995

2

22-23

Service Award, 1991-1992

2

24

Foundation Center, 1990-1993

2

25

Fund for New York City Public
Education, 1989-1996

2

26-31

Housing and Urban Development

Los Angeles Trip

Janet Carter's Correspondence,
1992

2

32

Meeting - Working Through the Crisis,
1992-1993

2

33

Trip, June 11-17, 1992

2

34

Trip Notes, 1992-1993

3

1

Washington D.C. Planning Notes,
1992

3

2

Conferences, 1994

3

3-7

Consolidated Home and Comprehensive Home
Affordability Strategy Report, 1993-1994

3

8

Correspondence, 1992-1996

3

9-14

Empowerment Zone

Application, 1993

3

15

Workshop, February 18, 1994

3

16

Euston, Andy, 1985-1987

3

17

Notes, 1993-1994

3

18

Planning Proposals, 1993-1994

3

19

Publications, 1994-1995

3

20-21

Seminar, March 23, 1994

3

22

Housing Senior Sources,
1984-1985

3

23

Independent Sector, 1993-1995

3

24

Institute for Urban Design

Ferebee, Ann, 1985-1993

3

25

Meeting, November 17, 1989

3

26

Municipal Arts Society,
1988-1989

3

27

National Center for Restructuring Education, Schools, and Teaching (NCREST), 1992-1993

3

28

National Network of
Grantmakers, 1982-1996

3

29-30

New York Cities Schools Research Consortium, 1995-1996

3

31

New York Public Education Data
Consortium, 1991

3

32

New York Public Education Grantmakers Network, 1989-1994

3

33

New York Regional Association of Grantmakers, (NYRAG),
1981-April 1992

3

34-36

New York Regional Association of Grantmakers, (NYRAG), May 1992-1996

4

1-4

Richelson, Gerry, 1987

4

5

Ross, Donald, 1984

4

6

Shared Housing, 1983-1988

4

7

United States Conference of
Mayors, 1990-1995

4

8

Urban Institute, 1992-1994

4

9

Teleconference on Sustainable Communities, September
13-14, 1995

4

10

West Harlem Community
Organization, 1984

4

11

Women in Philanthropy,
1990-1996

4

12-14

Executive Director, Janet
Carter

Correspondence

Community Resources Exchange,
1995

4

15

Greene, Jennifer, 1991-1994

4

16

Smith, Jim, 1989-1994

4

17

National Results Council, 1994

4

18

Council on Foundations

Affinity Group, 1994-1995

4

19

Annual Meeting, 1989,
1992-1995

4

20-25

Breakfast Group On Evaluation,
April 1986

4

26

Correspondence, 1991-1996

4

27-31

Evaluation Handbook, Early
History, 1986-1991

4

32

Evaluation Handbook and Advisory Committee Meeting,
May 15, 1991

4

33-34

Evaluation Meeting, June 1986

4

35

Evaluation Workshop, November
14-15, 1994

5

1-2

Forbes Trust, 1988

5

3

Institute for New Staff, 1984,
1993

5

4-5

National Conference on
Evaluation, 1994-1995

5

6-7

Research Committee, 1988-1993

5

8-20

Essays and Speeches, 1975-1996

5

21-22

Grantmakers Evaluation Network

Bylaws, n.d.

5

23

Correspondence, 1993-December
1995

5

24-30

Directory, 1993

6

1

Education Week Article, May 5,
1993

6

2

Evaluation Committee Handbook,
1986, 1991-1992

6

3

Newsletter, 1994-1995

6

4

Newsletter Correspondence,
1993-1996

6

5-6

Regional Association of
Grantmakers, 1994-1995

6

7

Educational Programs

Community Schools

Advisory Committee

Meeting, October 25, 1993

6

8-9

Barrett, Fran, 1989-1993

6

10

Campbell, Bertha, 1988-1996

6

11-12

Chittenden, Ted, 1988-1994

6

13

Fine, Michelle, 1987-1994

6

14-15

Fruchter, Norm, 1988-1994

6

16

Wolf, Dennie, 1988-1994

6

17

Zimiles, Herb, 1989-1994

6

18

Reports

Authority, 1988

6

19

Background, 1986-1990

6

20

Evaluations, 1988

6

21

Exchange, 1992-1993

6

22

Final Report, 1993

6

23-24

Brochure, 1993

6

25

Concordance, n.d.

6

26-27

Dissemination Ideas, 1992-1994

6

28

Evaluation of New York
Schools, 1993

6

29

Review of Performance
Indicators, 1993

6

30

Gould Foundation, 1988-1992

6

31

Other Reports Prior to Final
Report, 1988-1990

6

32-33

Philadelphia Collaborative,
1991, 1993

6

34-35

Reforms by Others, 1992-1994

6

36

Sites

District 2, 1988-1995

6

37-40

District 3-4, 7, 15-16, 27,
1987-1996

7

1-15

Public School 287, 21, 332,
1991-1994

7

16-18

Coordinators, 1990

7

19

List of Schools by District,
1988, 1992

7

20

Test Scores, 1989

7

21

Staff

Correspondence, 1986-1994

7

22

Holzman, Michael, Project
Director

Correspondence, 1987-1994

7

23-25

Notes by Janet Carter,
1986-1994

7

26

"Refounding Lakeside," 1986

7

27

State Education Department

Correspondence, 1988-1994

7

28-29

Thomas School Correspondence,
1988-1994

7

30

Meetings

March 30, 1988

7

31

Statewide Meetings, 1988-1994

7

32

New Compact for Learning, June
8, 1990

7

33

Notes, 1987-1992

7

34

Project Handouts, 1987-1991

7

35-36

School Report to Regents,
1989-1990

8

1

Walton Report to Regents, 1990

8

2

United Federation of Teachers,
1989-1990

8

3

Early Childhood Programs in
Education

Bruner Foundation, 1984-1986

8

4

Mother-Child Home Program,
1984

8

5

Educational Conference

Correspondence, 1990-1994

8

6-7

Notebook, March 6-7, 1992

8

8-9

Packet, March 6-7, 1992

8

10

Press Release, 1992

8

11

Videotape, 1992

8

12

Evaluation Consultants

Campbell, Bertha, 1977-1996

8

13

Campbell, Patricia, 1986-1996

8

14-16

Carter, Janet

Advisory Committee, PS 146,
1990-1994

8

17

Champion, 1993-1994

8

18

Community Organizing,
1994-1995

8

19

Correspondence, 1990-1996

8

20-24

Funders Concerned About AIDS,
1993

8

25

Path Prism, 1991-1992, 1994

8

26-28

Wilson, Tom, Boston College,
1993

8

29

Cherny, Jules, 1988-1995

8

30

Frankl, Jeanne, 1988-1995

8

31

Friedman, Grace Ibanez, 1990

8

32

Fruchter, Norm, 1994

8

33

Gordon, Arlene, 1992-1996

8

34-36

Holzman, Michael, 1994

8

37-38

Israel, Sherry, 1982-1986

9

1

Krischer, Jeffrey, 1982-1987

9

2-3

Tannenbaum, Perry, 1983-1986

9

4

Zimiles, Herb, 1983-1991

9

5-6

Guidance Initiative

Aaron Diamond Foundation

Design, 1989

9

7

Financial Support, 1989-1996

9

8

Advisory Committee

Meetings, 1989-1991

9

9

Corcoran, Thomas, 1989-1990

9

10

Jackson, Barbara, 1990

9

11

Shapiro, Edna, 1989-1991

9

12

White, Gardenia, 1989

9

13

Reports, 1990

9

14

Sites

IS 88, 1990-1992

9

15

Gressel, Gail, 1991-1992

9

16

Notes

Church, Alex, 1991-1992

9

17

Good Shepherd Services,
1989-1992

9

18

Perry, Jacqueline, 1989-1990

9

19

JHS 54

Allen, Deborah, 1990-1991

9

20

JHS 60, 1989-1992

9

21

Correspondence, 1989-1992

9

22

Church, Alex, Coded Notes,
1990-1991

9

23-24

Notes (General), 1988-1992

9

25

School Climate
Characteristics, 1990

9

26

Statistics, 1990-1991

9

27

Staff

Allen, Deborah

Correspondence, 1989-1992

9

28

Janet Carter Notes, 1989-1991

9

29

Church, Alex

Correspondence, 1989-1992

9

30

Janet Carter Notes, 1990-1991

9

31

Student Evaluators, 1991

9

32

Martha Bruner Scholars

Authority, 1980-1988

9

33

Background, 1976

9

34

Correspondence, 1980-1994

9

35-48

Reports, 1982-1990

9

39

Grants

A List of Past Grants,
1969-1983

9

40

ALCOR

Correspondence, 1971-1977

10

1-3

Meetings, 1971-1974

10

4

Pamphlets, 1969-1973

10

5

Proposals, 1971-1975

10

6-7

Reports, 1972-1976

10

8-10

Aleph Society/Rabbi
Steinhsalz, 1985-1992

10

11

American Israel Cultural
Foundation, 1967-1971

10

12

American Jewish Congress,
1981-1986

10

13

American Jewish Society for
Service, 1984-1986

10

14

American Professors for Peace

Correspondence, 1980-1984

10

15

Proposals, 1982

10

16

Anti-Defamation League

Correspondence, 1977-1983

10

17

Newsletter, 1983

10

18

Proposals, n.d.

10

19

Reports, 1978-1979

10

20

Associated Y's

Correspondence, 1979-1982

10

21

Meetings, 1979-1981

10

22

Pamphlets, 1979-1980

10

23

Proposals, 1979-1981

10

24

Reports, 1980-1982

10

25-26

Bank Street College

Authority/Budget, 1987-1988

10

27

Correspondence, 1987-1992

10

28

Reports, 1988-1990

10

29

David Bensman, Central Park
East Schools

The Paradox of Successful High
School Reform, 1994

10

30

Social Cost Benefit Study,
1992-1995

10

31-33

Paul Tanish Report, 1994

11

1

Boston University

Authority, 1988-1990

11

2

Correspondence, 1986-1990

11

3-4

Robbins, Anthony, 1986-1988

11

5

Brookdale Hospital

Annual Report Scrapbook, 1980

11

6

Bruner Developmental
Disabilities Center, 1972-1980

11

7

Center on Aging, 1987-1988

11

8

Correspondence, 1980-1984

11

9-10

Proposals, 1979-1983

11

11-12

Reports, 1980-1984

11

13-14

School Health Demonstration
Project, 1982

11

15-16

Center for Collaborative
Education (CCE)

Advisory Board

General, 1990, 1994-1995

11

17-18

Meetings, 1990-1991, 1993

11

19-21

Authority, 1989

11

22

Conferences, 1989, 1992

11

23-24

Correspondence, 1987-1995

11

25-28

Meetings

Elementary School Accountability, July 10, 1990

11

29

Graduation Portfolio, June 11,
1993

11

30

Math and Science Portfolio Review, May 9, 1991

11

31

Member's Retreat, Her Majesty's Inspectors of Schools,
October 26, 1991